Matchmaker

An interesting experiment is to find a child and explain what you do for a living. What would you say?

Now that I’ve been the content creator at Amcham Finland for one month, I am balanced between being both out- and inside it. It’s a good time to answer the question “What do we do at Amcham Finland, and how do I fit into it?”

Amcham Finland is a community of people that advances the exchange of all sorts of things in Finland and beyond: goods, services, experiences, knowledge, relationships and much more. It facilitates people being part of the world in a more meaningful way. It’s a door-opener and connector: a way to meet others, who in turn open new possibilities. We drive our members’ interests at nearly all levels—from the intimately personal to the hard facts and cold dollar bills.

What I’ve done last week serves well as an example.

On Monday, we held the Life Science Group (LSG) Update and Advocacy event at the Amcham Finland offices. LSG is coordinating the birth of 100m euros worth of new business in the life sciences by nurturing ideas and matching companies into co-creation projects. We partnered with Eera for professional business development because it’s what they do and they’re excellent at it.

After an update on the project’s progress, there was a rundown of the life science issues that we, together with our members, can advocate for in a coordinated manner. Getting everyone to ‘blow on the same coal,’ as we say in Finland, exponentially increases the impact and drives the needed change. Finland wants to be the ecosystem for life sciences in the world and we’ll only achieve that goal by working together.

But what did I do? I sat in the front row with my laptop and typed away at the keyboard like Glenn Gould on his Steinway (see what I mean here). The exchange of ideas can sometimes be furiously paced at Amcham, and it’s my job to keep one finger in each pie, learn all I can, and pass that knowledge on to you.

Tuesday morning, I arrived early for the New Member Morning, where I took photographs and met members. I spoke with Esko Hannula from Qentinel Group (“The hardest company name to pronounce!” he joked), which is now entering the US market. I also spoke with Roope Musto and Ryszard Janik from Hard Rock Cafe about holding events in their space, replete with John Lennon’s glasses and hand-written lyrics by Kurt Cobain. Muhammed Kavranoglu told us about Turkish Airlines’ cooperation with Amcham. Heidi Almi spoke elegantly about the Finnish National Opera and Ballet, which deals in artistic experiences for babies right up to the elderly—over 600 a year. Marja Vanhala and Pekka Kiuru of NCC Suomi described their vision for construction and development, which is longsighted and part of a holistic vision of society. And many more!

In the afternoon, I attended the Legal Committee Meeting at DLA Piper’s offices, where I listened to a presentation on the artificial intelligence legal platform Kira. As the presentation progressed, I could see myself sitting in the past. In one hour, I had traveled an entire paradigm into the future! Legal work is changing—becoming more efficient—and so are sectors like banking, healthcare, running any large company and much more. Being prepared for the upcoming watershed is crucial, and that’s where Amcham Finland comes in and why I write the words that I do.

Writing is at the heart of my job, and that’s a big part of why I love it. I arrive at the office early, make a pot of coffee, and sit at my desk looking out at the Helsinki harbor. By the time the Silja Symphony pulls up, I hope to have a rough draft ready.

Knowledge is what binds our community together, and my job is to help spread that knowledge to you, our community members.